Foundation vent covers



July 15,1958 J. N. JACKSY 2,843,035

FOUNDATION VENT COVERS- Filed NOV. 18, 1954 FQUNDATIQN VENT @(WERS James N. Jacks, Grenada, Miss.

Application November 18, 1954, Serial No, 469,814

1 Claim. (Cl. 98-29) This invention relates to foundation vent covers and more particularly to a cover which can be detachably applied to a foundation vent to close the vent during cold weather.

It is among the objects of the invention to provide an improved cover for a foundation vent which can be quickly and easily applied to an uncovered vent to close the vent .against the passage of cold air under the associated building floor; which can be provided in various sizes and has selectively usable mounting formations to facilitate mounting the cover on a mesh or grills disposed Within the vent; which is formed from a single piece of suitable sheet material; and which is simple and durable in construction, economical to manufacture, easy to apply, and neat and attractive in appearance. The cover is fastened to the vent by means of a wire spring which is inserted through one of several small holes in the vent cover.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of the following description and the appended claim in conjunction with the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary elevational view of a foundation wall with a vent therein showing a vent cover illustrative of the invention operatively applied to the foundation vent;

Figure 2 is a cross sectional view on the line 22 of Figure 1; and

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the cover.

Figure 4 is a View of a wire tension spring.

With continued reference to the drawing, the foundation Wall is provided with a vent opening 11 extending therethrough and a vent housing 12 is mounted in the opening and provides a mesh or open work grille 13 extending over the cross sectional area of the opening to prevent the passage of small animals, reptiles and other creatures into the space below the associated building floor while providing a free flow of ventilating air into and out of this space to protect the floor sills from mildew, dry rot, or other deteriorating conditions.

While it is necessary to provide foundation wall vents in buildings not provided with basements, it has been found that in very cold weather the flow of cold air under the associated building floor tends to chill the floor, rendering the building uncomfortable and requiring an excessive amount of heat to maintain a comfortable temperature within the building.

In mounting the vent housing, such as the housing 12, in the openings in the foundation walls, a thick layer of mortar is placed on the wall surface at the bottom of the opening and a thin layer is placed on the top and end surfaces of the housing. The housing is then placed in position in the vent with its grille disposed inwardly of the outer surface of the wall and mortar is pointed around the housing to provide a seal between the housing and the adjacent surfaces of the foundation Wall surrounding the vent opening. The thick bottom layer 14 is trowelled down from the bottom edge of the front of the housing to the outer bottom edge of the vent opening to provide an outwardly and downwardly inclined surface 15 to shed rainwater out of the opening, this surface usually having an inclination of approximately 30 degrees.

The vent cover of the present invention comprises a body 16 of suitable sheet material, such as sheet steel, aluminum or copper, of elongated rectangular shape having a length substantially the same as the length of the vent opening, and a width somewhat greater than the width of the front portion or grille of the vent housing. This body is bent along a longitudinally extending fold line 17 disposed near one longitudinal edge of the body to provide an outwardly extending flange 18 inclined at an angle relative to the rest of the body substantially the same as the angle between the mortar surface 15 and the front face of the vent housing. The distance from the fold line 17 to the longitudinal edge of the body remote from the fold line is substantially equal to the width of the front face of the vent housing, as is clearly illustrated in Figure 2.

The body 16 has three small holes as indicated at 19 to fit the wire spring (as shown by Figure 4, and by 20 of Figure 2) through one of which the terminal prong 21 of the tension spring 20 is inserted, selecting a hole that is not blocked by a section of the vent grillage, and the terminal prong 21 of the tension spring then is forced through the grillage of the vent and twisted until engaged by the grillage of the vent, the tension in the spring (Fig. 4) holding the vent cover securely in place.

When the cover is in place in the vent opening, as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, it substantially seals the opening against the passage of air through the vent and the flange 18 extends outwardly and downwardly along the inclined mortar surface at the bottom edge of the vent housing to deflect precipitation outwardly of the opening.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiment is, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claim rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claim are, therefore, intended to be embraced therein.

What is claimed is:

A foundation vent grille cover comprising a body of sheet material of rectangular shape having one or more small holes centrally located in said body, an outwardly and downwardly extending flange formed along the lower longitudinal edge of said body for directing rain water away from the lower edge of a grille mounted in a vent opening, compression spring clip means having an axially extending stem secured at one end to outer end of the spring and having a hooked portion at its other end, whereby when the spring is compressed the hooked por tion may be passed through one of the holes in said body and bear against the rear surface of the grille for attaching said cover to the grille.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,717,788 Kurtz June 18, 1929 2,048,744 lanes July 28, 1936 2,076,726 Kamen Apr. 13, 1937 2,328,288 7 Merrill Aug. 31, 1943 2,350,771 Klunder June 6, 1944 

